Linking Climate Action with Social Justice

David Leonhardt, Rhiana Gunn-Wright, and Douglas Holtz-Eakin talk about the Green New Deal. Gunn-Wright is policy director for New Consensus.

Rhiana Gunn-Wright grew up on Chicago’s South Side and suffered from asthma as a child. She suspects it’s because she lived near a power plant. Gunn-Wright, who’s African American and helped write the Green New Deal, says communities of color are disproportionately affected by pollution but that should change if America’s future energy transition — from fossil fuels to renewables (or another source) — is thoughtfully done. “In 50 years, after we have [shifted], will the black unemployment rate still be double the average rate? Will communities of color still have above average air pollution levels? Will the distribution of power still be the same?” Watch more from Gunn-Wright.

Combating Climate Change with Protest

Environmentalist Bill McKibben says we can’t wait any longer to protect the earth. With global warming, weather events are worsening and communities are suffering. “The world is now in violent and chaotic flux,” says McKibben. Transitioning to renewable energy is one solution, he says, and demonstrating is another. In the Aspen Ideas to Go podcast, he urges people to take action today (Sept. 20) during the Global Climate Strike.

"It’s really hard to be in this important developmental stage of life but also, totally in the shadow of knowing that the way you’re developing isn’t going to be the same as generations before you. [The climate crisis] is a hard thing to have to contextualize while you’re also trying to get into college or find a prom dress." — Vic Barrett, youth plaintiff in Juliana v. United States

Hear more from Barrett in the Aspen Ideas: Health session, The Emotional Toll of Climate Change.

What will we eat in a bigger, hotter world? How do we place a price on carbon? What are companies doing about climate change? Discover more ideas on climate in our collection, Coming to Grips with Climate Change.

— IN THE NEWS —

Should E-Cigarettes Be Banned?

The US Centers for Disease Control is now investigating lung illnesses associated with e-cigarettes after eight people in the US have died from vaping. At Aspen Ideas: Health, Matthew Myers, Deborah Arnott, and Elizabeth Cohen discussed whether, with more young people using e-cigs than tobacco, vaping should be banned or regulated more vigorously. Listen to The Pros and Cons of E-Cigarettes.